Numbers: Their Occult Power and Mystic Virtues

By W. Wynn Westcott

The Secret Doctrine Of H. P. Blavatsky, a work Of erudition containing a vast fund Of archaic doctrine, has supplied me with valuable quotations. If any readers desire a deeper insight into the analogies between numbers and ideas, I refer them in addition to the works Of Eliphaz Levi, Athanasius Kircher, Godfrey Higgins, Michael Maier, and John Heydon I have quoted from each Of these authorities, and Thomas Taylor's Theoretic Arithmetic has supplied me with a great part Of the purely arithmetical notions Of the Pythagoreans, the elucidation of which was mainly due to him. In conclusion, I request my readers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Forgotten Books
• Release date: Nov 6, 2017

W. Wynn Westcott

William Wynn Westcott (1848-1925) was an English Rosicrucian and Theosophist, Magus of the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia, and founder of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Westcott was a prolific writer on occult subjects, including numerous articles in theosophical periodicals, Rosicrucian pamphlets, and several books, including his 10-volume Collectanea Hermetica. Born on December 17, 1848 in Leamington, Warwickshire, England, Westcott became active in Freemasonry in 1871. He became Master of his home lodge in 1874, and later Master of the Quatuor Coronati research lodge (1893-1894). In 1879 he moved to Hendon, and began studying the Kabbalah the following year. He joined the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia (SRIA) and became chief of the SRIA in 1891, following the death of William Robert Woodman, with whom he co-founded the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn in 1887, along with Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers. Using the motto V.H. Frater Sapere Aude, the Golden Dawn was a secret society devoted to the study and practice of the occult, metaphysics, and paranormal activities during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Known as a magical order, it was active in Great Britain and focused its practices on theurgy and spiritual development. Around this time, Westcott was also active in the Theosophical Society, and founded The Adelphi Lodge in London W.C. in 1891. In 1896, Westcott abandoned public involvement with the Golden Dawn due to pressure regarding his job as a Crown Coroner, but continued to head the SRIA and was later involved with the Golden Dawn breakaway Stella Matutina. He retired as a coroner after 1910, emigrated to South Africa in 1918, and died in Durban on July 30, 1925, aged 76.